Cigarettes and Your Tinnitus

Did you know that the amount of cigarette smoke you encounter in your daily life might be affecting your ringing ears? It’s true.

We don’t have solid scientific studies of the relationship between cigarette smoke and tinnitus. Instead, we have persistent reports from many tinnitus sufferers that seem to show a link between tobacco smoke and ears ringing.

Specifically, many tinnitus sufferers find that their tinnitus gives them more problems when they breathe cigarette smoke, whether from their own cigarettes, or from being around people who are smoking. These same people report some lessening of their symptoms when they are not around smoke.

Unfortunately, that’s about all we know right now. We don’t know if there’s a connection between nicotine and tinnitus, or whether it is something else about the cigarette smoke that causes the problem. We don’t know whether other kinds of smoking (cigar or pipe) have the same effects on people.

We don’t even know if the problem is the smoke, or some form of increased stress from being around someone who is smoking (although that seems unlikely in the case where the tinnitus sufferer is the one doing the smoking).

In short, all we know for sure is that there seems to be some kind of link between cigarettes and increased tinnitus for many people.

Are Cigarettes Contributing to Your Tinnitus?

So now what can you do? You can conduct an experiment. If you are concerned that cigarette smoke (or smoke from some other source) is worsening your tinnitus, the first step is to reduce your exposure. Avoid situations where you are exposed to smoke as much as possible for a few days. During this time, pay attention to the frequency and severity of your tinnitus.

If your tinnitus symptoms seems to improve when you avoid cigarettes, you are probably sensitive to the smoke, and should do everything you can to avoid smoke whenever possible. If you don’t notice any change, you are probably not sensitive so smoke, at least where your tinnitus is concerned.